The Dreaded Flying Monkey

It was a big ask. 

The Hallowed Hall Ball Society was in a bind. They had no bats for their Hallowe’en extravaganza, the “Ha Ha Ball.” 

The year before, the Vampire Bats made a scene. There was some bloodshed — not that anyone minded the mayhem, but the cleanup was more than a bother. Being unruly was simply uncalled for. Needless to say, they were not invited back. 

It was in the Southern Dale of the Knockwood Forest where they found a colony of vegetarian bats, the Cabbage Roll Bats. A letter went forth to the fine fruit-loving creatures requesting their presence. To the delight of everyone, they accepted, and correspondence continued. The bats would have a long journey, indeed. Eager to mitigate the stress of travel, the Society provided a detailed map to this year’s secret Ball location, replete with rest stops and one giant caveat, “beware of the dreaded Flying Monkey!” Nothing more was noted in the letter.

Beware of the Dreaded Flying Monkey

The Cabbage Roll Bats found out soon enough what the warning meant. They came upon a massive and impenetrable stone fortress at the twilight of their second night of flight. The map detailed it as Snore’s Coven. And circling it, in the sky appeared to be a broom-flying cape-wearing monkey.

The Snore family residence was no urbanite cul-de-sac dwelling. Instead, it housed a dangerous group of soulless witches and warlocks. But which witch was the worst? 

The Darker the Green, the Meaner the Mean

The saying goes, “the darker the green, the meaner the mean.” And Ella-Snore and her sister She-La-Snore both had very dark green skin; indeed, a visible measuring stick of their toxic lies, conceit and dark deeds.

She-La-Snore didn’t care about this conspicuous truth. She wore her cragged face like a badge. But Ella-snore did care. She wanted lighter younger skin; it was all part of her allure and trickery, with the end game being attention. Oh my, how she craved affection and flattery! She would do anything to get it, and the Ha Ha Ball was just the ticket. The timing could not have been more perfect, for tonight, there was to be a Full Moon! With her newest scheme in play (and a little help from a charm spell), she would be crowned once again, the “Belle of the Ball!”

And so, with a copy of Queen GrimHilde’s tell-all expose, “Snow White: The Naked Truth About Her Skin Care Regime!” tucked under her arm, Ella-Snore disrobed in front of the Full Moon.

Orders were quickly given, “Get me this…” and “I want…” And a special directive to the flying monkey, “Keep the sky clear! Nothing is to block the Moon’s rays!”

So there, on a stone rooftop, reclined Ella-Snore, naked on a comfy lounge chair before the rising Full Moon. She quickly fell into a black cat nap, dreaming of alabaster skin.

A Collision of Events

The Cabbage Roll Bats were in a serious huddle contemplating how to cross the Coven’s sizeable property without detection.

“Impossible!” 

“Can’t be done!” 

“Look how fast that Monkey is!” 

A ground crawl was quickly forgotten too. The biting Invisa-Lizards were everywhere!

But the Full Moon on All Hallows’ Eve was beyond magic. And after surveying the scene, decided that some trickery of his own was needed; How about a Lunar Eclipse?! And so the Moon passed into the Earth’s shadow, causing all to go dark. 

Plunged into sudden darkness, the bats quickly saw an opportunity. They flew undetected over the Snore’s Coven, arriving at the Ha Ha Ball in the projected time. 

When Ella-Snore awoke, the sky was black, her skin the darkest of greens, and she impulsively let out a blood-curdling scream! Her scream broke the charm spell, freed the Flying Monkey from servitude and turned the Invisa-Lizards to stone, albeit temporarily.

The Ha Ha Ball

The Ball was truly glamorous, and anything or one that went “bump in the night” was there. The fabled Flying Monkey sans spell stood smiling in the splendour of his regalia – a flowing red cape and an upright broom. 

As for Eli-snore, she arrived with large amounts of pancake makeup splotched on her face. The room’s heat melted the makeup, leaving all to see just how dark her skin was. She was not the “Belle of the Ball” this year, far from it. She sat unaccompanied, deep in angry thought, pondering how the Moon had betrayed her! Viewing the bats with loathing, she said, “now, who will pay for this?!”

And the bats? The fruit-loving Cabbage Roll bats discovered the “YES!” (there is alcohol) fruit punch and had a good old time swirling upside down on the chandeliers. This created a stunning disco ball effect which led to the colony being crowned as the “Belles of the Ball!” They were definitely invited back next year.

Happy Hallowe’en!